Social justice movements form Kenya Left Alliance, vow to contest all seats in 2027 polls

The Kenya Left Alliance (KLA), a coalition of social justice movements and progressive parties, has declared its intention to contest all elective seats in the 2027 General Election.

Leaders of the new outfit said they want to provide Kenyans with an alternative to what they termed decades of misrule by the ruling elite, which they blamed for unemployment, poverty, and widespread oppression.

“KLA is a bold, ambitious and urgent call to action for a national democratic revolution. Our ballot revolution heralds a new phase of political organising by the Kenyan left,” said Nduko o’Matigere, National Chairperson and Party Leader of the Ukweli Party, one of the member organisations.

The alliance describes itself as a “socialist, feminist, pan-Africanist and anti-imperialist coalition uniting progressive political parties, movements, and individuals.”

Its first national delegates congress on Saturday brought together activists and representatives of affiliate groups, including Kongamano La Mapinduzi, Social Justice Centre, and Ukweli Party.

Co-founder of the Mathare Social Justice Centre, Wanjira Wanjiru, said the gathering marked the beginning of a wider campaign. “This congress marks the start of a nationwide campaign for liberation from the anti-people politics of oppression,” she said.

The alliance strongly criticised the cooperation pact between President William Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza Alliance and Raila Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement, formed after the June 2024 Gen Z uprising.

Activist Sungu Oyoo described the deal as a betrayal of Kenyans. “In response to the people’s rebellion, Kenya’s two most powerful and corrupt political cartels, Kenya Kwanza and ODM, united in their shared greed for power and wealth, only differing in the targets of their ethnicity-based politics,” he said.

KLA leaders outlined their vision of uniting citizens across ethnic and generational divides on a platform centred on employment, universal healthcare, quality education, land reforms, access to water, and food security.

“This ballot revolution is the only way to permanently banish from our governance the caretakers of imperialism and neocolonialism that have ruled for the last six decades,” said social justice advocate Sefu Sanni.

The alliance’s manifesto places strong emphasis on rebuilding and expanding Kenya’s industrial and agricultural base to create jobs, especially for young people.

KLA also invited citizens to register as members, volunteers, mobilisers, and candidates under the Ukweli Party, founded by activist Boniface Mwangi.

Other Topics To Read

• Politics
• Headlines
• Social Justice Movement (SJM)
• 2027 general election
• 2027 polls
• Kenya Left Alliance
• Social justice movements form Kenya Left Alliance
• vow to contest all seats in 2027 polls